Here I will post my daily workout and nutrition intake. For the coming months, I hope to gain insight on the vegan diet and lifestyle while maintaining a fit physique. This will only happen with hard work, research, and of course, your suggestions, advice, and constructive criticism!

If you want some more information on my background, you can check out my introduction to this forum here. In my intro I outline my reasons for adopting a vegan diet and talk about switching to a complete vegan lifestyle.

Thanks in advance for the support!! Everyone here rocks.

Last edited by Veganarchy on Sun Aug 28, 2011 4:34 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Welcome and awesome decision to go vegan. It shouldn't be very difficult to maintain your physique, just make sure to eat enough good food so you don't get too skinny. The book "Becoming Vegan" helped me a lot to work out what I should be eating, so I always recommend it to newly vegan people. It's pretty cheap on amazon and easily worth much more. Good luck and have fun!!!

Workout summary for Saturday, January 22:Attended a Vinyasa class. Grade: B+. I was still stiff and sore from kickboxing the day before.Nutrition: - Soymilk with scoop of soy protein- Apple- Dank salad with azuki beans, tempeh, dark leafy greens, avocado + other veggies- Veggies with hummus- 1/2 cup oatmeal (dry) with cacao nibs, 1/2 sweet potato- Soymilk with scoop of soy protein and chia seeds- 1/2 cup oatmeal with banana - Grapes and blueberries- Granola (which I would have nixed had I not had the munchies)

Calories: 1,940Fat: 61.8Carbs: 294.2Protein: 84.0Grade: B-. It would have been lower, but I think I needed the extra food for having eaten so little lately.

Workout summary for Sunday, January 23:Sundays are my rest and relaxation day.

Calories: 1,478Fat: 20.1Carbs: 261.1Protein: 76.7Grade: A-. I need to start eating at least this much a day. I don't want to underfeed myself. I realize that's not healthy! I need to be more patient with my progress. I'm already doing a great job; there is no need to be so hard on myself. It's easy for me to get carried away.

Last edited by Veganarchy on Tue Jan 25, 2011 9:55 pm, edited 3 times in total.

Workout summary for Monday, January 24:Attended a Yogasculpt class (yoga with weights). Grade: A-. I didn't push myself too hard (except when working abs) so that I can hit it hard tomorrow on the machines. I used 3lb weights instead of 5 and maintained good form. In a few months I hope to feel just as good doing these exercises with 5lb weights!

Veganarchy wrote:Grade: A-. I need to start eating at least this much a day. I don't want to underfeed myself. I realize that's not healthy! I need to be more patient with my progress. I'm already doing a great job; there is no need to be so hard on myself. It's easy for me to get carried away.

Veganarchy wrote:Grade: A-. I didn't push myself too hard (except when working abs) so that I can hit it hard tomorrow on the machines. I used 3lb weights instead of 5 and maintained good form. In a few months I hope to feel just as good doing these exercises with 5lb weights!

Also I want to ask if you have a recipe for your dressing, because I have been looking for a good oil-free dressing and I can't seem to find one. :S

Good luck with everything!

Thanks for commenting on my positive attitude, Fallen_Horse! It's great to hear others affirm my own affirmations and even my inner monologue.

In reference to the salad dressing recipe, my concoctions are always pretty experimental. I take whatever is in my pantry and mix it together. Common ingredients include but are not limited to: apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, spices, and lemon or lime juice. I don't have any ratios for you (well, maybe 2:1 for the vinegar:soy sauce). Just use your good judgment and you'll be oil-free and dandy.

Workout summary for Tuesday, January 25: - Attended a Zumba class. - Completed my weight training routine (week 4, day 1):Lying leg press: 90lbs x 12reps x 2setsLying leg curl: 30lbs x 12reps x 2sets Standing calf raise: 50lbs x 12 reps x 2 setsSeated cable row: 50lbs x 12reps x 2sets Back extension: 60lbs x 12reps x 1set; 70 lbs x 12reps x 1setFlat bench press: 50lbs x 12 reps x 1 set; 50 lbs x 8 reps x 1set Dumbbell shrug: 10lbs x 12reps x 2setsDumbbell press: 7.5lbs x 12reps x 2sets Triceps pushdown: 22.5lbs x 12reps x 2sets (down 5lbs from last time)Barbell curl: 18lbs x 12reps x 2sets Barbell wrist curl: 45lbs x 10reps x 1 set; 45lbs x 3reps x 1set (should use 24lb bar next time)Crunches: 12reps x 2setsGrade: C+ for Zumba. I got there five minutes late and didn't have the energy to go all-out. I was confused half of the time and not trying as hard as I normally would had I not just woken up and eaten a poor excuse of a breakfast. B+ for weight training. I really pushed myself on the bench press today; it was my first time adding weights to the bar! It was disappointing to have to lower the weight for the triceps pushdown, but it was understandable since this muscle group had been worked for the past couple of days. That's okay! It will give me a chance to fix my form, since I think I cheat towards the end of one rep by flaring my wrists out a little instead of pulling down all the way with the force of my triceps, .

Calories: 1,557Fat: 42.7Carbohydrates: 233.0Protein: 85.4Grade: B+. I should have consumed something more than soymilk before my workout today. I felt weak and confused during the Zumba class. Otherwise, I think I did just fine.

Note: I was especially excited for my weight training routine today, because now that I'm on week four, I am performing more than one set. I just read some tip-top advice: "When you can perform the recommended number of reps for a set, add weight. Many individuals fail to do this, which makes it hard to add any muscle." This makes a lot of sense, as I have felt my routine to be easier than I anticipated. I should be seeing my workouts get more intense as I follow this advice.

Workout summary for Wednesday, January 26:Attended a cardio kickboxing class followed by a 30 minute core class. Grade: A overall. I used 1lb weights the entire time (okay, I put them down for 10 seconds tops) and really pushed myself. Core felt great. I mean, it hurt, but I pushed through it!

Calories: 1,513Fat: 34.2Carbs: 216.2Protein: 110.6Grade: A+. Low in fat and high in protein! That's what I'm talkin' about. My smoothie this morning gave me the boost I needed to kick it in class this morning. Huzzah! Rockin' body, here I come.

Workout summary for Thursday, January 27th:Attended a cardio Kickboxing class. Grade: A. Damn, after taking this class, I feel like I should have given myself one grade lower than I initially did. It was tough, but I pulled through.

Calories: 1,702Fat: 40.2Carbs: 253.0Protein: 104.7Grade: ?. I became really hungry towards the end of the day... more so than usual. I'm wondering if it's because today's workout was incredibly intense. There is a reason for the question mark...

I definitely see progress when I look at my body, but I am not sure how much longer I can sustain myself on a 1,500 calories diet. Perhaps it was just a rough day today, the first of my fitness experiment. And seeing how it's only been a month since I've started exercising, I think I should keep my food intake the same. However...

Whenever I feel tired, I'm always afraid that I'm not eating enough but then get confused as to whether or not I should up my calorie intake. I feel like there is this delicate gray/fuzzy zone in reference to how much one should eat when either bulking or cutting. People say to eat more when you want to gain muscle and to eat less to lose fat, but what if I end of gaining fat when I eat more and losing muscle when I eat less? Strength training and cardio are both important to maintain good health, but how much of each activity is recommended to achieve your goal? The uncertainty you might have just experienced in your mind is what I'm referring to as the delicate gray/fuzzy zone. If you didn't just experience that, you must have some advice on what I should do to get lean.

I guess my question is: what do I do to ensure that I'm losing unwanted fat instead of good muscle?

I never knew losing weight and gaining muscle could be so hard... it seems like a delicate science to me at this point in the game.

Veganarchy wrote:Grade: ?. I became really hungry towards the end of the day... more so than usual. I'm wondering if it's because today's workout was incredibly intense. There is a reason for the question mark...

I definitely see progress when I look at my body, but I am not sure how much longer I can sustain myself on a 1,500 calories diet. Perhaps it was just a rough day today, the first of my fitness experiment. And seeing how it's only been a month since I've started exercising, I think I should keep my food intake the same. However...

Whenever I feel tired, I'm always afraid that I'm not eating enough but then get confused as to whether or not I should up my calorie intake. I feel like there is this delicate gray/fuzzy zone in reference to how much one should eat when either bulking or cutting. People say to eat more when you want to gain muscle and to eat less to lose fat, but what if I end of gaining fat when I eat more and losing muscle when I eat less? Strength training and cardio are both important to maintain good health, but how much of each activity is recommended to achieve your goal? The uncertainty you might have just experienced in your mind is what I'm referring to as the delicate gray/fuzzy zone. If you didn't just experience that, you must have some advice on what I should do to get lean.

I guess my question is: what do I do to ensure that I'm losing unwanted fat instead of good muscle?

I never knew losing weight and gaining muscle could be so hard... it seems like a delicate science to me at this point in the game.

First, feeling hungry towards the end of the day could be a result of the calorie deficit, or eating larger portions earlier and smaller later, or not getting enough fiber to fill you up later in the day. Can I ask how tall you are? 1500 cals is definitely a low amount if you are doing large amounts of exercise. I noticed my calorie deficit when I was dead tired by the end of the day.

As far as the fat loss / muscle gain conundrum, lobsteriffic is right. Being on a low calorie diet you need to really push your muscles to grow, which involves using them and feeding them. In other words, weights and protein!

Ever since I was a child I have had this instinctive urge for expansion and growth. To me, the function and duty of a quality human being is the sincere and honest development of one's potential.- Bruce Lee

Workout summary for Sunday, January 30:Attended a Yoga Sculpt class.Grade: B-. I guess my arms and shoulders were still pretty sore from quincy-digging. I also dreaded my friend's hair this weekend which I should take into account as for why my performance was sub-par. I couldn't do half of the poses because it burned so badly.

Nutrition:- Kiwi- Salad of green bell pepper, mushrooms, daikon sprouts, strip of tempeh, dash of soy sauce, sriracha sauce, a little bit of peanut butter- Tempeh ruben sandwich on rye with coleslaw side (from restaurant)- Oatmeal raisin cookie (from restaurant)- 1 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup carrotsGrade: C. I would give myself a lower grade, but I have to remind myself that I can't eat salads for the rest of my life. Today was the first time in a month I put any kind of bread in my body. It was also the first time I had any kind of dessert that wasn't fruit. I suppose yesterday's granola mix was kind of like a dessert, though. Although this weekend's binging has set me back a bit, I don't regret any of my choices. I will just have to keep track of it a bit more diligently or work extra hard at my next session.

This weekend was overall not a success in terms of progress. However, I did put plenty of yummy foods into my body that my palette has not experienced in a very long time. It was pretty pleasurable. My calorie-intake was kind of high these past few days... but, my body might have needed that extra boost. Also, I've been going strong vegan-wise! Yipee!